Report: Sacha Baron Cohen to Play Freddie Mercury

Sacha Baron Cohen has proven he can transform into the craziest of characters. But can he take on a rock legend?

Deadline.com reports that the man behind Borat and Bruno has been cast to play Freddie Mercury in a film set to start production next year. The film has already secured the rights to many of Queen’s songs, including “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “We Will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions.” The film will span from the band’s formation up until their performance at Live Aid, but will not cover Mercury’s last days struggling with AIDS.

Baron Cohen can sing — he proved that in Sweeney Todd — but it’s unclear whether he will belt the anthems himself or just lip-sync. And he’s yet to really prove himself in more serious roles. Either way, he bears a striking resemblance to Mercury, and we all know he can rock some serious spandex.